Guy Newman being interviewed by SN

Great Coaches on Great Soccer: Guy Newman on Great Soccer

Guy Newman was was born November 26, 1957 in Portsmouth, England and is a former professional soccer player.  Newman played in the North American Soccer League (NASL), American Soccer League (ASL) and Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL).  As the son of English player and renowned MLS and Sockers coach, Ron Newman, Guy Newman grew up immersed in the world of soccer.  

Guy Newman when he played with the Strikers

Newman always knew he wanted to become a pro soccer player and turned professional in 1978 with the Tampa Bay Rowdies. The following year, Newman joined the Fort Lauderdale Strikers. When Ron Newman moved to coach the San Diego Sockers in 1980, he brought in his son Guy, first as an outstanding player and then, when Guy Newman retired from playing professionally in 1987, as a coach. The rest is history as the famous father and son team lead the Sockers to numerous championship seasons.  In 1996, father and son also coached the Kansas City Wizards in the Major League Soccer (MLS).  

SoccerNation News (SNN) interviews on Great Coaches on Great Soccer.

In 2000, Guy Newman turned his expertise to competitive youth soccer and became the head coach of the Del Mar Sharks and in 2009 became the head coach of Encinitas Express.

SNN was thrilled to interview Ron Newman on his views on soccer in America and youth soccer player development.  Here is the first part of our two-part series on Ron Newman on Great Soccer.  Newman is rich in passion, wisdom and experience.

SN: You have lived the life of a soccer player and coach.  What do you think about soccer in America today?

Guy Newman: "I think soccer in America is complex.  It is a situation where you have a soccer pyramid.  In America, you have the top tier players and then all the rest. The soccer pyramid hasn’t really gotten taller, but it’s gotten broader. There are more of the decent players, but the number of real high quality players is still the same. America was producing that same type of soccer player 20 years ago as it is today."

SNN: What can we do to be able to produce better soccer players?

Guy Newman: "I think we need to do things a little bit different in the way we coach and develop. I think the Academies are a good start at improving the development of today's youth soccer players."

SNN: You have significant professional experience coaching players. What do you recommend would be better? 

Guy Newman as a young soccer player.  Can you see Newman?  The handsome boy in the middle looking at the camera with the dark hair.

Guy Newman: "I think we need to put our young soccer players in a good soccer environment. This is very important."

"One of the things I realize in San Diego is that it’s very hard to find a good environment for training. I don’t think we have enough soccer fields, enough quality soccer facilities. Everything is sort of scattered."

"I look at parks being built in San Diego and usually they’re baseball parks. The soccer field is an afterthought, often one that is put in the outfield. You look at the baseball field and they have nice bleachers, but on the soccer field everybody has to bring their own chairs. It is a shame and it is wrong."

SNN: So that should definitely change.

Guy Newman:  "Yes, I think you need to have proper soccer fields. In San Diego we don’t have that. We just have parks that are multi-use.  There are a few soccer fields but there aren’t many. When I was at Del Mar, I used to look and we’d have a small soccer field.  We would have a hundred kids practicing soccer at Torrey Pines on this small field. Then I would look over at the big field and there would be about eight players practicing baseball there. We’re packed like sardines and they’ve got this field and there’s hardly anybody on there. There’s something wrong with this picture.

SNN: What do you think about today's youth players?

Guy Newman: "I think there’s a lot of very talented soccer players coming. There’s some really good players being developed. It’s exciting for this country.  America just needs to produce soccer players at a little bit higher level, and gradually we are getting there."

SNN: What should players try to do to be successful?

World famous soccer player Pele signing Guy Newman's cast.   Newman's former teammate Eddie McDaniel is in the middle.

Guy Newman:  "Players should always try their best and enjoy the game of soccer. For instance, when going into a tryout, I think the best thing is just go out and enjoy yourself and play hard. And that’s hard to say because everybody is nervous. Parents make their kids even more nervous, I think, because parents are sometimes more nervous than the kids. What we try to do is make it fun and go out there and play." 

SNN: Why are tryouts held around State Cup?

Guy Newman: "It used to be that tournaments were held later, after State Cup was finished and there was a rule. And then, I guess, some clubs started to recruit and hold try out before and clubs topped following the rule. In the end, I think Cal South said “just do it whenever you want” because they couldn’t enforce the rule effectively. And now, each club tries to do it a week earlier than the next club, and next thing you know it’s right during State Cup. So you’re pretty much starting your next season before your last season is finished, which is sort of crazy." 

SNN: How long have you been involved in youth soccer in San Diego?

Guy Newman: In San Diego, I would say since I came here in 1980, when I was playing for the Sockers. Then I left Southern California for a little while to go to Kansas City, when I was in MLS, and when I came back it was a huge difference in the world of youth soccer. I mean, it got so much bigger, and that was just in a short time frame of six years. I was surprised how big youth soccer became, and that was in the year 2000. Since then, competitive youth club soccer has gotten huge."

SNN: Do you think the clubs are very competitive with each other?

Guy Newman, the Socker soccer star

Guy Newman: "Yes, I think they are very competitive. I do think we have too many clubs which places a lot of pressure and forces things...let me explain. You need to put the right group of players at the right level, and sometimes because there are so many clubs, everybody’s got five or six or seven good players and you’re trying to fill up teams with other soccer players who maybe should be playing at another level."

"It’s not fair to those kids, either the really good players or the players who are not quite at that higher level. The system, and the high number of clubs does not allow players to develop naturally because they’re always under pressure. I think if we had less clubs, and we allowed more of the same level players to develop at the right level and play together, it would help improve soccer overall. But it’s a very difficult thing to manage."

SNN: Coaching younger players is different than older players, why?

Guy Newman: "There are many reasons, skill level, physical ability, but one of the most important differences is how to speak to younger players."

"I think it’s important the be carefull with the vocabulary we coaches use when we talk to younger players.  It is important to communicate clearly, and not make it too difficult.  We need to know that they, the young players, understand what we say as coaches."

"I remember when I first started coaching in Del Mar, we had a U8 team playing, and I had one lad whose name was Jack and he was playing at right back. When he had the ball, he was playing a little bit too wide so I said “Jack, Jack, tuck in, tuck in.” And Jack sort of ignored me, but he’d tuck in his shirt and I wondered, “What is he doing?” Then I suddenly realized he thought I meant to tuck in his shirt. So you have to be careful what you say to young players so they know what you’re telling them." 

SNN: What do you recommend coaches say to players before an important soccer tournament or game?

Guy Newman:  "I think one thing that’s super important for a coach when he gets to high level and intense games is that he should try and relax players rather than get them geared up."

"When you get to a certain level of games, it shouldn’t take much to get players up and ready to go. What you need to do sometimes is get the players to try and relax because they’re nervous, and nervous players can’t really play."

"Obviously you don’t want them lackadaisical, but I think the importance of the game alone should make the player serious, otherwise they shouldn’t be there. Sometimes, I see coaches get themselves so nervous it rubs off on the players. That’s something that coaches should be aware of, that they need to sometimes relax their players a bit."

SNN: What can you tell me about Encinitas Express?

Guy Newman: "Encinitas Lightning offers both a recreational and competitive soccer club program. The club has been around for more than twenty years.  Former professional soccer player Juli Veee was the director of coaching for donkey’s years.  Veee had been with Encinitas Express for a long long time, and wanted to sort of step back a little bit and relax and do his art work. They asked me to come in and take over. I love to work with Juli because we played together for many years at the Sockers."

"I’ve come into a club that’s pretty ambitious. Encinitas Express has been hovering at the same level for a number of years, and they want to take a step up. So I’m putting in some new programs that will help develop the players and really get the teams going. Just change a few things; change the mental attitude of the players.  Encinitas Express has good athletes and I want to help the players discover the joys of really becoming great soccer people.

SNN: What’s the right mental attitude? If you could brainwash them, what would it be like?

Guy Newman: "The right mental attitude is one that is involved in soccer.  Players should have real passion for the game, not just participate in playing soccer in a group during team practices or organized matches. For me, as a kid, you can’t play just twice a week.  You have to be constantly involved in the game, watching it live, watching games on television. Not all kids have that patience to watch a whole game, I understand that, but there should be some parts of the game they can look at and see, and learn from.  It is great to get players to see live soccer action.  And to watch game highlights. YouTube is great for soccer clips."

"The more players can live the game, always have a ball at their feet, always be lerning, the better they will become.  Soccer is a way of life, and a wonderful one."

Teofilio ‘Nene’ Cubillas, George Best, Guy Newman, Gerd Mueller in 1979